Centaurs Take On Chino Hills

In what is becoming a typical Friday Night performance, quarterback Zevi Eckhaus threw for 4 touchdowns and 262 yards, as the Culver City Centaurs rolled over Bishop Garcia Diego high school, 34-6. The Centaurs improved to 11-0 with the first round Division 5 playoff victory over the Santa Barbara based school.

Bishop Garcia Diego high school, known as the Cardinals, jumped to a quick 6-0 lead at Jerry Chabola Stadium in Culver City. The Cardinals came out running the ball, with the obvious goal of controlling the clock and limiting the Centaur possessions. It was the right idea, but the Cardinals were not able to sustain it. They rushed for 172 yards in the game, but only gained 21 yards passing. Without a credible passing attack, the Centaurs eventually took control of the game.

The Centaurs travel to Chino Hills to take on the Huskies in the next round of the playoffs. The game is scheduled for Friday Night, November 15th, starting at 7:30 PM. The Huskies have a 6-5 record for the season and are coming off an impressive first round road win over Mayfair high school of Lakewood, 42 to 12. Chino Hills has won five of their last seven games, with the two losses against Rancho Cucamonga and Upland. Rancho Cucamonga is currently ranked No. 11 in the Southern Section by MaxPreps and Upland No. 17. All three are members of the very competitive Baseline League in the Inland Empire.

Chino Hills has played some tough competition in the Baseline league. They have also been through some tough times this season. In October, six games into the season, Chino Hills football coach Chris Stevens and athletic director Sam Sabbara both abruptly resigned following allegations of "pranking" and "teasing" that involved freshman students. Jose Espinosa took over as interim head coach and somehow led the team to the playoffs.

The Huskies are led by quarterback Matthew Getting, who has thrown for 2,408 yards, including 27 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. When he was not throwing the ball, Getting was handing the ball of to running back Rayce Thorton, who has rushed for 1,118 yards, averaging 7.1 yards per carry and adding six rushing touchdowns.

This game will be a challenge for the Centaurs. The Huskies are a team that has gone through a fair amount of adversity this season and survived. They seem to be getting better each week. They will not quit. The question will be, can their defense match up with the speed of Centaurs offense? Will they be able to get pressure on Eckhaus? It should be an interesting match-up.